By Tony Becca, Senior Sport Editor
Williams...bagged five wickets
JAMAICA took over sole leadership of the Busta cricket series with a decisive victory over the Leeward Islands at Kaiser Sports Club, Discovery Bay, yesterday.
Entering the fourth and final day on top and in command with the Leeward Islands on 24 for two and needing another 305 runs to win on a pitch that was below par from the start, Jamaica, led by pacer Laurie Williams with five wickets for 20 runs, shot out the visitors for 197 a few minutes after tea to win by a comfortable margin of 131 runs.
Final score in a match made memorable for the see-saw drama of the first two days when Jamaica recovered from 85 for six and then cut down the Leeward Islands when they were chipping along at 104 without loss - Jamaica 257 and 233 for 9 declared; the Leeward Islands 162 and 197.
Joint leaders with the Leeward Islands at the start of the fourth round contest, Jamaica, bidding to regain the Busta Cup they last won in 2000 and looking to retain the Busta International Shield, are now sitting alone and pretty at the top with 39 points.
With the scent of victory in the air after fast bowlers Darrell Powell and Jermaine Lawson had set them up with the scalps of Alex Adams and Stuart Williams on the previous afternoon, Jamaica walked onto the field yesterday morning as if they were superior, as if nothing, or no one, could stop them, and as it turned out, it was only a matter of time.
In contrast, even though Sylvester Joseph hinted that they would not go meekly when he drove at the first delivery of the morning, the Leeward Islands appeared resigned to their fate and apart from a bold stand of 101 in 137 minutes off 218 deliveries between the attractive Sylvester Joseph(who stroked a solid 64) and the dashing left-hander Ian Tittle(who smashed 62), chances are it would have been over long before it eventually did. With the score at 40 for four at 10.14 a.m., probably even before lunch.
Lawson, who opened the bowling from the north, struck the first blow for Jamaica when Dave Joseph, not surprisingly, swung powerfully at the pacer and lobbed a catch to David Bernard Jnr. at mid-on.
That was 40 for three and in the following over, Laurie Williams, who started from the south, picked up the first of his handful of wickets when he removed Junie Mitchell leg before wicket at 40 for four.
At that stage it did appear only a matter of time - and with Tittle, who escaped at three at 55 for four when Laurie Williams failed to hold onto a return catch low to his left, swinging his bat in what appeared nothing but desperation, not too much time at that.
With the ball coming slowly off the pitch, however, and with Tittle growing in confidence and timing the ball well, he and Joseph, the batsmen who scored 211 not out and 101 not out respectively in the previous match against the West Indies "B", the batsmen, both of whom failed to score in the first innings, moved into the Jamaica attack and reeled off lovely shots.
Whatever hope the Leeward Islands may have cherished of hanging on and pulling off something surprising at the end was destroyed by Laurie Williams who then stepped in and pocketed the last four wickets with accurate seam bowling.
